Judge puts temporary hold on Kroger, Albertsons $25 billion deal
A Denver District Court has temporarily halted the proposed $25 billion merger of The Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos.
During a hearing on July 25, Judge Andrew J. Luxen granted a preliminary injunction delaying the merger and also cancelled an Aug. 12 hearing on the matter. The two companies agreed to the delay as they await a court ruling on a lawsuit filed by the attorney general of Colorado to block the deal. The trial is set to start on Sept. 30.
A Kroger spokesperson told Reuters that the decision is welcome news as it eliminates the need for a preliminary injunction hearing.
In a statement, Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said he was pleased “that Kroger and Albertsons agreed to halt their plans to merge until the court rules on the state’s lawsuit to permanently block the grocery merger.”
“This is great news for shoppers, workers, farmers, and other suppliers who can rest assured that this mega merger will not go into effect during harvest season and while kids are headed back to school,” he continued.
The Federal Trade Commission and a group of states have separately sued to challenge the deal in Oregon federal court. A hearing in that case is set to start on Aug. 26.
[Read More: FTC sues to block Kroger-Albertsons $24.6 billion merger]
Earlier this month, Kroger released a list of the stores, distribution centers and plant locations that the two grocers plan to divest to C&S Wholesale Grocers as they look to allay antitrust concerns over their proposed $24.6 billion merger with Albertsons Cos. The assets include 579 Kroger- and Albertsons-owned stores across 18 states and Washington, D.C., including 124 locations in the state of Washington, 101 in Arizona, 91 in Colorado and 63 in California.
In addition, the list includes six distribution centers (two in Phoenix, two in Colorado and one each in Salt Lake City and Auburn, Wash.) and a dairy plant in Denver.
